‘Super Aluminum’ Yields Remarkably Tough, Lightweight Knife: OKNIFE XEN-OAL Review

I am all about counting ounces when it comes to sleeping bags and hiking boots, but I get a little wary when knife brands start trimming “fat” off their knives. Sure, there are plenty of reliable knives out there that come in at 3 ounces or under. However, a growing amount of these lightweight knives are only rated for light-duty work.

Light-duty knives are great for carrying around if you spend considerable time opening letters and packages. And they’ll slice open packets of Mountain House Chili Mac and moleskin, but they’re not necessarily a knife you want when you find yourself in a sticky situation in the middle of nowhere. Put simply: You can’t do demanding work as they can flex and fail in hard-use situations.

In response, OKNIFE set its sights on making a lightweight knife that was tougher than the rest. The brand was so hellbent on the objective that it created a new aluminum alloy for the task. It also partnered with renowned knifemaker Ken Onion to design something with his appeal.

The result is the OKNIFE XEN-OAL knife, a full-size folding knife made of premium materials and sporting an uncanny amount of toughness for a knife that only weighs 2.57 ounces.

In short: With its XEN-OAL, OKNIFE created a hardworking, lightweight knife that excels in corrosion and abrasion resistance, and a stout degree of toughness. It is not the least expensive knife out there, but it’s a reasonably priced option for those who mind their packweights and face rugged outdoor tasks. Buy this knife and beat it up!

OKNIFE XEN-OAL Knife Review

Design & Features

To get the XEN-OAL to function well and still be as tough as it is, OKNIFE developed a new aluminum compound for the handle: “OAL Super Aluminum.” This revolutionary alloy is just as light as the well-known 6061 aluminum, but it’s harder, stronger, and tougher.

This benefits the form as well, as OKNIFE claims that OAL will maintain a factory-fresh finish for years.

For blade steel, OKNIFE chose to go with premium powdered S45VN steel. With better edge retention than its uber-popular sibling, S35VN, S45VN is also tougher and has higher corrosion and abrasion-resistant properties. To seal in these factors, OKNIFE applied a “pearlescent stonewash” finish to the sheepsfoot blade.

For a company that’s only been making knives for a couple of years, some of these features are very impressive.

The overall design is characteristic of a Ken Onion knife. It’s long and slender and designed to fit your hand while looking good. Onion decided to go with both a thumb stud and flipper opening mechanism on the XEN-OAL. Both methods are aided by ceramic bearings around the pivot.

However, the big surprise here is the choice to go with a framelock. Framelocks are usually relegated to titanium handles because titanium can handle the stress and flex. But because of the advanced OAL composition, it’s implemented here and functions beyond expectations.

First Impressions

I am not a big fan of aluminum-handled knives. Not only do they lack the grip that I like on a knife I plan to use and abuse in all environments, but they also tend to show the most wear and tear. In making the OAL Super Aluminum, OKNIFE addressed both of my decades-long concerns.

The handle scales have differing surface treatments, the most dominant of which is a triangular pyramid array. This provides an incredible grip whether your hands are wet or dry and is complimented by an embossed section of lines that horizontally bisect both scales. This juxtaposition is great, providing function to something that just looks like a form enhancement. It feels very on-brand for a Ken Onion-designed knife.

I’m impressed with the balance of weight and size, and how fluid the XEN-OAL flicks open and locks up. I generally prefer a flipper mechanism when available, but the cutouts in the handle scales make the thumb studs just as easy to deploy the blade with.

The knife also fits really well in my hand, barely overlapping my palm, and allows my thumb to land on the spine jimping above the thumb stud. Shout out to the pronounced choil as well! It does an incredible job of keeping my index finger in place, enhancing my control over the knife.

As a big proponent of sheepsfoot blades, I am delighted by this blade. Its elongated design and belly will work well for slicing and chopping.

In the Field

My area of the East Coast has been nailed with wet weather — snow, ice, rain — and then muck for days. Everything I did with this knife involved wetness, right down to cutting pine branches and pine cones for the centerpiece on a Christmas table. For a guy who does not like aluminum due to how slippery it can get, I am beyond thrilled with how well the XEN-OAL stayed put in my palm.

You’ll see that I had the knife in the snow, or got just got it wet in general. That’s the life this knife has lived over the past couple of weeks, and I’m not worried about corrosion at all. Everything on this knife has high corrosion and abrasion resistance. In fact, I’ve knocked it around pretty good, and it still looks brand new.

As I prefaced in the beginning, most lightweight folders on the market today require some compromises to hit their weight. They’re simply not made to twist, torque, or put to hard work. Well, feel free to go crazy with the XEN-OAL. It can take whatever abuse you throw at it. There’s no flex in the handle or any wobble in the blade, and the lock-up is incredible.

Right now, the XEN-OAL stands as a serious contender for the next update to “Best Overall Hiking and Backpacking Knife” in GearJunkie’s Best Knives for Hiking & Backpacking guide. It will be interesting to see how other users react to it between now and then.

Steel: S45VN Is Tough!

Crucible Industries makes some of the best knife steel on the planet, and if the brand doesn’t shut down, we’re all going to benefit from its efforts for years to come.

CPM-S45VN, which elongates to Crucible Particle Metallurgy-Stainless-45-Vanadium-Niobium, is the more refined sibling of S35VN. There are a handful of steels in Crucible’s “S” line, but S45VN is the one that’s most closely related to S30V, and also one of the toughest.

Hammering a knife is never recommended. However, I think this video shows off the uncanny toughness of S45VN, as well as how well the blade treatments hold up.

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Overtravel Concerns?

One common ailment of any framelock knife is lock “overtravel.” This happens when you flick the knife open aggressively, and the lock indexes further down the back of the blade than anticipated.

When this happens, you have to do a little song and dance to get the lock freed up.

Thankfully, this isn’t present on the XEN-OAL. I am not sure if it’s great tolerancing during the machining process or the alloy itself. Either way, I’m a bit of a brute, and I could not get the lock to jam in any of my best efforts.

In Conclusion

I believe the outdoor industry is in a weird place with outdoor gear and tools. The pervasive ultralight phase has its claws in everything, but when brands react to it by making lighter tools — knives, for example — that can’t perform as well as something heavier, it worries me.

I’ve read too many articles and reviews of people sacrificing their safety to save a few ounces. To me, that’s on par with folks who think they can pet a bison at Yellowstone.

But I am beyond happy (and relieved) to have tested and confirmed that the XEN-OAL may be a lightweight knife, but it is not a light-duty one. I’m hard on the gear and tools I use because life in the outdoors is demanding. I eagerly submitted this knife to hard use and abuse. But aside from a little pocket lint, the XEN-OAL shows no signs it gave in to either.